Rhys is a rich country ruled by a large number of merchant-princes. More information is found below.

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More Information

Rhys

Capital: Rhys City

Population: 4,320,000 (humans 79%, gnomes 12%, halflings 4%, elves 3%, half-orcs 1%, dwarves 1%)

Government: Hereditary polyarchy

Religions: Fiolonna, Mistbringer, Noldur, Shador, Torin

Imports:  Carpets, mercenaries, spices, sugar, tea.

Exports: Fish, furnishings, gems, gold, textiles, timber, wool.

Alignment: N, LN, LE

Rhys is a beautiful, resource-rich country ruled by a consortium of merchant-princes. These individual princes have split the country into large estates where their word is law. There are approximately 90 merchant-houses of varying influence. Each of these houses maintains a mercenary army that protects their interests. Once every three years, the merchant-princes gather at the Convo, a large gathering where the individual princes negotiate contracts, try to settle disputes between individuals, and make “laws” for the country. The word “laws” is used very loosely because in each of the princedoms, the merchant-princes word is law. Nowhere in the world is there a larger nest of vipers than in the city of Rhys during the Convo.

Although Rhys is blessed with mineral resources, excellent farmland, and abundant fishing waters, she only has one deepwater port capable of handling large sea-going vessels, Rhys City.       

LIFE AND SOCIETY 

The day-to-day life of the Rhysian people varies depending on the princedom that they live in. Some of the princes are liberal, treating their people well, and commanding respect from their serfs. However, other merchant-princes aren’t as accommodating and treat their serfs like slaves, often sending a bounty hunter to hunt them down if they abandon the land they are charged with working.

MAJOR GEOGRAPHICAL FEATURES 

Rhys has a rocky coastline, three large forests, and a beautiful range of mountains. Although rugged, Rhys has large swaths of rich farmland, as well as excellent grazing land for sheep and other livestock.

The climate in Rhys is temperate, hot in the summer, and cold in the winter. Rhys, however, gets far more rainfall than their neighbors to the south, with spring rains that sometimes last for a week.

Gherin’s Flank: A long, thin forest that runs parallel to the coast, Gherin’s Flank is a refuge for monsters and bandits. It is named for the great general Gherin and his perpensity to use the forest to protect his flank.  

Glimmer Forest:  The Glimmer Forest is a forest to the north of Rhys known for its large amount of gildenleaf trees. Loggers populate the area surrounding the Glimmer.

Haldor’s Forest: This forest, roughly shaped like an inverted L, is named for a powerful wizard that lived within its boundaries shortly after the Talaxian war. It is a dangerous forest and it is rumored that at least two green dragons have taken up residence within.

Star Peaks: The Star Peaks is a small mountain range in the eastern section of Rhys. Several mountains in this range are snow-capped all-year-round and form the headwaters of several small rivers. On the south end of the Star Peaks is the realm of Gorlister, a merchant family that uses animated bodies to mine for gold and gems.

The Vale: The Vale is the breadbasket of Rhys. It is the large, flat central area between the three forests and the mountains. The entire area is dotted with windmills.

IMPORTANT SITES 

Rhys City (Metropolis, 53,996): Being the only deepwater harbor in the country, the city of Rhys is a bottleneck for the trade-oriented princes. Any prince on the east coast of Rhys that needs to send goods through a port has to do it through Rhys City.

Rhys City is controlled by the richest of the merchants, the Karollini family. The Karollinis maintain a large army and an equally large fleet of vessels. The Karollini fleet consists of merchant vessels, escort ships, and privateers that actively search for pirates. The taxes that the Karollinis charge for passage through their city are actually very reasonable, but that is only because they make their money back through shipping fees and pirate protection. Of course another reason that the Karollinis charge such a small amount of taxes may be that if they charge too much, they stand the risk of many of the other princes joining together to destroy them. Although both their army and navy are well trained and equipped, they would be crushed if a sizeable number of the princes pooled their resources to oust them.     

REGIONAL HISTORY

Before the Talaxian Empire, Rhys was just a frontier consisting of small farming villages. The Talaxians changed this, taking over, and forcing Talaxian governors on the indigenous people. The Talaxians ruled for 300 years until the Neflekis and Teketians revolted.

After a hard fought war, the Talaxians were expelled from the modern countries of Neflek, Rhys, and Tekat. The Rhyian people attempted to give rule of the country to a powerful wizard named Haldor that lived in the forest that now bears his name. Haldor didn’t want to rule, so he split the country between 100 warlords that helped to expel the Talaxians and their current form of government was formed. In the 200 years since, five families have died out and been absorbed by their neighbors.